The honest truth is these flats are gosh darn cute, however, gosh darn painful to break in!

If you know anything about shoes then you know it isn’t the brand that is painful it’s the fact that breaking in shoes is a pain in the rear no matter the designer, brand, etc.

Aside from this review I did find a good video on youtube on how to break in shoes without all the pain and I very much recommend following the video if you want to avoid blisters and the pain of breaking in shoes! Video: Breaking in Shoes

My favorite features of these shoes are basically everything! I love the color, the look of the Tory Burch logo, the elastic around the foot, and the flexibility.

The color is very neutral and in this case I was looking for a neutral flat that I could wear with everything.

What I like about the logo on the Caroline flat is the unique look of it. For most of Tory’s shoes the logos on shoes either have the traditional medallion on the shoes such as on the Reva collection or a very small logo.

Personally I find the elastic a very nice touch! I feel like the elastic allows the shoe to fit your foot better rather than your foot fitting the shoe; if that makes any sense.

The flexibility is also a nice feature of the flats, this type of shoe tends to give more to your feet and gives more room to move around while wearing them. In my opinion as much as I like the classic revas, I believe these flats are easier to walk and move around in because they are more flexible.

Unfortunately, I do not see these on the Tory Burch website, however, you might be able to talk to your local Tory Burch store about finding a pair! Also, if you click on the description (quote) given at the beginning of the review I have linked the search of “Caroline” and it will show all the available “Caroline” flats, wedges, etc. There’s different colors and patterns in this flat, you’re bound to find something you will just adore!

Look for more reviews to come! Any questions, comments, or feedback, we would love to hear! {Mackenzie}

Like this:

This is an all in one eraser, brightener and corrector with a radiant finish. It is available in nine shades, ranging from 00-7. I tried 1, Rendezvous. Although it looks grayish pink on all the advertisement swatches, the color is actually a creamy beige, similar to my natural skin. The color matched well.

This is super smooth and applied nicely with my concealer brush with no creasing or clumping. It really looked great, and did all that it claims to do…for about two hours. After that I started noticing the product was sheering out. It got worse over the course of the day until it looked like I had not used any concealer at all by noon. The area around my nose became splotchy. It looked as though it went away from my pores, which accentuated them. I had high hopes for this at first and thought it was leaning toward HG status until I did a check after a few hours. Boo.

Like this:

What it is: A weightless foundation that provides an ultra definition airbrushed finish without the look of makeup.

I had been wanting to test this out for awhile. The “ultra definition” aspect seemed fun and new, so I broke out my samples and got to work. I originally thought I would be shade 2 based on the color of the actual product, but that was way too light, so I went on the Urban Decay website and tried to use the foundation match guide, but they didn’t have the shade in their database in the brand that I currently use, so I took a guess and it generated the result that I am a 4. This looks super dark in the bottle but when I applied it, it did match pretty well. Any of the shades with a .5 at the end are cooler shades, so keep that in mind when choosing a shade.

The product is super runny, almost water-like. It applied very smoothly and dried quickly. A very light coat goes a long way. It doesn’t really feel like I have any makeup on my face but it does provide the blurred, even, airbrushed finish that it claims.

I tried this with two different primers the first two days, and then with no primer on a third day. It definitely holds up better with no primer. The first two days, it got sort of splotchy after a few hours, but still looked good from afar. It looked cakey around my expression lines. It held up much better on day three, but still wasn’t perfect up close. It did end up breaking me out a little bit too. I think this needs reformulated for durability. I should be able to get 10 hours out of this with no touch ups like my other non-long-wear foundations. I would love to try this again if the formula does change, it definitely needs some work but has the potential to be a pretty great product.

I’ve been using these for at least ten years for my shoes, adding another shelf as my collection grew and funding allowed for it. This tutorial is for one set of two shelves. These are sized for flats and most heels, but my platforms and boots don’t fit (more on that later). I highly suggest purchasing a large amount of fabric initially if you plan to add to these as I did. Most times certain fabrics are seasonal, just like clothing, and you will never find them anywhere again. You can find large bolts of decent looking fabric at places like Walmart for $.50 a yard! The quality is usually not the best, but for something like this, you’ll never need to touch it once it’s done so it doesn’t matter as long as it looks good. You can generally get three sets of shelves out of one yard of fabric, depending on the width of the fabric.

Assemble your shelf according to the instructions. Save the box.

Measure the back of your shelf or check the box for the measurements. In this case, the shelves measure 12×31″. Trace this size rectangle onto your box and cut it out. This will serve as your cardboard backing.

Measure and mark your fabric to a few inches larger than your cardboard. In this case, 15×35″. Cut this out and iron it if needed. Lay the fabric out flat, face down.

Apply glue to one side of the cardboard and carefully center it over your fabric, doesn’t have to be perfect, then lay it down so the fabric will now be glued to the cardboard. Quickly flip it over and smooth out any bumps or wrinkles before the glue dries. The glue will seep through a little, but if you’re using Elmer’s, this won’t matter.

Flip it over again so it is face down. You should see extra fabric around all four edges. Apply glue along one side of the cardboard and fold the fabric down over it. Hold it down a few seconds until the glue adheres, then proceed to do the same with the remaining sides. Your shelf backing is now complete.

Lay your shelf face down so the back is showing. Center your new backing on top and nail it fast along the top and edges. I used two nails in each corner, three down each side, and four along the top. Feel for the lower shelf and add a few nails along that edge as well. If you’re having trouble with this, you can mark where the shelf is by using the side screws as a guide, then nail along your marking.

You’re all done! As your shelves start to fill up, you can place each pair of shoes with one shoe facing forward, the other facing back. This will free up enough space to add an extra pair to each shelf. If you have platform heels or ankle boots, you can skip the step of adding the lower shelf. Get a couple of shelf brackets from the hardware section of most stores for a few dollars and add the extra shelves to the inside ends of a closet. I added some to my laundry closet to store extra towels and bathroom items. For tall boots, scavenge yard sales and discount stores for old bookcases with adjustable shelves. You can usually get them for a few dollars and spray paint them any color you like. Apply the steps above to make the matching backing.

My boot shelves shown here on the right were made from an old “oak look” bookcase that had decent water damage. You can also see the top two shelves on the left are the ones that I skipped adding the center shelf. In all, I have seven white Closetmaid shelf sets shown here along with the bookcase.

This type of storage system keeps shoes organized and healthy, which means they will have a longer life and you will get more use out of them. They don’t get crushed and damp shoes are able to dry, unlike basket or box storage.

Have you always wanted one of those crystal clear acrylic makeup storage chests with the drawers? The ones just like Kim Kardashian’s $300 storage drawers? I found a place that sells some that are pretty much identical. Muji has a store in Times Square, New York selling various items including acrylic makeup storage containers. The containers are also available for purchase online, so I ordered one. I got the large five drawer case, but they come in several configurations and sizes.

It came well packaged and the item was completely wrapped to prevent any scratches or chips in the acrylic. The drawers were unaligned initially, but once I re-inserted them, they slid great and stayed in the track. I purchased several other matching items, including the top section shown below from The Container Store to complete my makeup vanity. These are all great products and are very reasonably priced. They look expensive and are of high quality. I believe the only difference between these and Kim’s are the little handles vs. the pulls. I honestly prefer the Muji brand pulls much better.